Open ♔ envied by both neighbors and gods:

[priforprince]

Characters: Hibiki and you!
Date: Early February
Location: Around and about Aifaran
Situation: Hibiki discovers many things and is bad for teacups.
Warnings: hibiki Narcissism; poor fine motor skills.

[ Scene I - At a fancy art gallery. ]

[ A rare chance has come up, for those interested in the arts. It seems a renowned Igheeri sculptor has discovered a new muse, and has created a design for their intended masterwork. Today, that design shall be unveiled to the public, acted out by that very muse! Live art!

Excitement is high at the event. The Igheeri swoops down from a perch installed in the gallery for just such flourishes. After a brief, haughty speech about a Dreamfolk worthy of being immortalized in art, the cover over the modeling muse is is whisked away to reveal -

Well. This intended pose for the future statue is sure something. Something the model is now doing in real time.



Do try not to faint. ]

[ Scene II - In the Dreaming Bridge. ]



"User not found"?!

[ This is impossible! Yes, Hibiki had only made that Xa Xa account to stay better informed on everyone else's folly, but for it to have completely vanished....! And when she had actually wanted to inform her audience of her change in status, at that!

She's being rather loud in the hallways of the Dreaming Bridge. It's early in the morning. And she's placing a call. ]

Technical support? An outrage has occurred. Amend it immediately!

[ Scene III - On the street. ]

[ "I'm gonna prove I love bibirus more than you! By....by talking like this, bibi!" ]

HHHHHHHHH!



[ Hibiki had been about to take a sip out of this teacup when a couple of squabbling kedan kids pass by. One has made his head sprout bibiru wings. The other has taken this as a challenge.

And Hibiki's teacup is a victim, dropping from her fingers to shatter on this streetside table. She, herself, is frozen in shock. A single drop of blood leaks from a cut on her finger where a piece of the breaking cup had nicked it. Where it spills on the table, a tiny imp rises, stretches, yawns, and looks around. Since Hibiki doesn't seem to be moving, it sits on a piece of the broken teacup and waits.

Nothing to see here. ]

[ Scene IV - At a cafe. ]

What morbidly useful creatures.

[ Hibiki is sitting in a corner of this cafe, accepting the handkerchief one of her imps has just fetched from her pocket for her. She presses it against the finger she'd pricked and watches the second imp carefully stir her tea with a spoon that's bigger than it. ]

The generation method is slightly out of my idiom, but all things considered, the ultimate servants would of course be a part of me. These shall serve flawlessly--

[ Clatter. The imp tips the teacup over by stirring too hard. Now it's standing dumbly in a spilling puddle, looking down.



Hibiki's eyebrow twitches. ]

Comments

[priforprince]

[ The imp turns at hearing a new voice and waves its spoon, making a tiny squeaking sound. Hello! It is wet for some reason!

The first imp, meanwhile, climbs to Hibiki's shoulder and sits on her epaulet. And Hibiki herself... ]

Are you employed here?

[ hibiki no ]

[ninjainviolet]

[ Requesting a towel from an employee, Sheena continues doing what she can with the napkins.

Her tone is crisp and full of anger as she scowls at Hibiki while holding her hand out for the wet imp to jump on to. ]

No, I am not. I am, however, doing what you should have done.

[priforprince]

What I should have -

[ What, toweling off her imp? Hibiki doesn't follow. Its job is to look after her. Vice versa is strange.

The wet imp squeaks at Hibiki for permission to hop into that hand. ] You may.

[ Granted, hooray! The imp jumps.

And falls short.

It even squeaks when it flops back onto the table. ]

[ninjainviolet]

Yes, what you should have done.

[ Sheena watches as the imp falls, her expression still concerned. ]

Are you all right?

[ She turns back to Hibiki. ]

You are aware that he spilled hot tea on himself? And why is he doing something you are more than capable of doing yourself?

[priforprince]

Providing amenities is the role of a servant.

[ Second time is the charm for this imp, which gamely picks itself back up and then makes it into Sheena's hand. ] I'm merely exploring their capabilities.

[ The imp turns in a circle. Whoa. Everything looks different up here! The table is - the table is down there now! ]

[ninjainviolet]

[ Oh. That was the wrong thing to say as Sheena's eyes begin to spark in anger, her speech terse. ]

Did you Summon them?

[ Thanking the employee who has brought the towel, she waits until the imp stops turning before offering the towel to him. ]

Here you go, little one. This should help dry you off.

[priforprince]

[ Oooh. It's a soft. Something. The imp puts the towel on its head and sits down under the weight. Comfy.

Hibiki does not see what business her imps are of this person's, but since she's showing them off, she'll keep obliging. ]

They're generated from drops of my blood. As parts of me, they're bound to possess monumental power.

[ The imp rocks back and forth beneath the towel, happy. ]

[ninjainviolet]

[ Sheena's smile grows even fonder over the imp's reaction, and she peeks under the towel to make sure he's all right before focusing on Hibiki, the smile disappearing. ]

I see. So, since you're all parts of the same whole, does that mean you don't mind it when people treat you disrespectfully and callously?

[priforprince]

No harm was obviously done.

[ Look. The one under the towel is even humming to itself. This ended well!

Is that not appeasing...? ]

[ninjainviolet]

This time.

But, you still haven't answered my question.

[ She's going to try a different approach. ]

If you spilled a hot liquid on yourself and people ignored you, how would you feel?

[priforprince]

[ Hibiki sees where this is leading. And thus, rather than step right into the waiting trap,

she says nothing. And averts her gaze. At least the point was made?

The imp pops out from beneath the towel and hurries over to pat at Hibiki's hand with it. That she wasn't wet is of no concern. The towel is fun. So it will show Master the fun thing. Look. You do this with the towel! ]

[ninjainviolet]

That's what I thought.

[ Her voice has lost some of its edge at Hibiki's silent realization.

Smiling as she watches the imp, the ninja nods towards him. ]

Summons are comrades--not servants or slaves. They protect you; you protect them.

After all, all of you are a part of each other.

[ She's not lecturing, but sharing experience. ]

[priforprince]

You sound personally invested.

[ Hibiki, for her part, doesn't sound fully convinced. But she does take the napkin from the imp - if only to make it stop patting her.

There's probably no point in attempting to clear up this misunderstanding further. Coming when you call it and delight at doing your bidding are the very earmarks of a servant, are they not? ]

[ninjainviolet]

That's because I'm a Summoner on my world. I made pacts with the Elemental Spirits of the planet, allowing me to call upon them when I need their help.

I respect them, and they respect me.

[ And that's the key. They may like helping Sheena protect others and keep the world from fading away, but it's done because of a mutual respect. ]

However, if I disrespect them in any way, or abuse the pact I made with them, then the pact will be annulled, and I won't be able to make one again with them--even if I have the Right to.

[ Again, not pompous, just Sheena giving a hint because everyone gets tired of being mistreated. ]

[priforprince]

Every puniverse has its own inconvenient systems.

[ What a discouraging but unsurprising discovery.

The imps begin attempting to climb up onto Hibiki's epaulets. What next, Master? What next?

One of them waves at Sheena. Look! They're higher up now. It is fun. ]

I'll arrange a satisfactory relationship according to my own aesthetic.

[ This is the suavest and most nonchalant anyone has ever attempted to appear while covered in imps. ]

[ninjainviolet]

Inconvenient? [ Sheena shakes her head. ] I don't really think so. Only certain people have the Right to Make the Pact with the Elemental Spirits--which sadly means, I'm the only one on my world.

[ Okay. She's going to just chuckle at the imps climbing on Hibiki. At least the young woman isn't yelling at them or rolling her eyes for them doing so. ]

Hmmm. I'm not sure it'll be entirely yours, but just keep in mind not to abuse that relationship in any way.

[priforprince]

[ Does this look like the face of the person who's going to do the abusing. This face, which is being patted by imps. She's squishy!

This vista, in fact, is all the reply Hibiki feels up to giving right now. In a moment she'll probably be capable of speech again, but right now it's taking all her brainpower to process that somehow, she's ended up on the receiving end of pats. ]

[ninjainviolet]

[ Sheena watches the imps and what they're doing thoughtfully for a moment. She's a Summoner used to beings wielding the elements as weapons, these imps, however... ]

It looks like your Summons specialize in the power of kindness and possibly innocence.

[ Sheena helping with that being able to speak again thing? ]